Thank you, Alan, for letting us know. Sad, sad news, indeed.
     Generous, gracious, welcoming, encouraging, thoughtful, helpful, 
sharing . . doesn't even begin to describe Tom Tenney.
      Tom was the one who coaxed me into the Mark Twain Circle and all 
but insisted I attend my first State of Mark Twain Studies conference in 
1997. He'd helped me (of course) with Twain research, spending hours on 
the phone, making suggestions and pointing out all sorts of wonderful 
directions to follow. After a few of these conversations, he said in 
that soft-spoken way (you know you can hear his voice), "You really 
should join the Mark Twain Circle." When I protested that I was just a 
writer, not an academic, he lured me in with: "You're just the type of 
person we need in the Mark Twain Circle." I'm still not sure his 
assessment was correct, but how was I not going to join after that? I 
walked into the greater Mark Twain community (and it is pretty great, by 
the way) because Tom Tenney opened the door, held it open, welcomed me 
in and pulled me through. Forever grateful. For me, he will always 
represent so much of what's so wonderful about those who share this 
passion for Mark Twain.

On 2/2/2012 10:55 AM, Alan Gribben wrote:
> Dr. Thomas A. Tenney (1931-2012), best known for editing the MARK TWAIN JOU=
> RNAL but also recognized for his assistance to younger scholars, died yeste=
> rday at 3:45 p.m. of heart failure after a brief stay in a Charleston hospi=
> tal.
>
> Dr. Tenney received the John S. Tuckey Award from the Center for Mark Twain=
>   Studies at Elmira College in 2005.  He was the author of MARK TWAIN:  A RE=
> FERENCE GUIDE (1977) and its various supplements, along with numerous other=
>   publications.
>
> There will be a private family service at a later date, according to his wi=
> dow Margaret Tenney; no public funeral will be held.
>
> Before his death Dr. Tenney made arrangements for the continuation of the M=
> ARK TWAIN JOURNAL.
>
> Sincerely,
> Alan Gribben=
>